At a lecture I attended, a leading banker said “long term thinking should not be used as an excuse for short term failure”. At the time, he was defending short term profit making as against long term investment, but when applied to discussions of longtermist the point is similar. Our policies and actions can only be implemented in the present and must succeed in the short term as well as the long term. This means careful risk assessment/management but as the future can never be predicted with absolute certainty,the long term effects of policy become increasingly uncertain into the future. It should be remembered that policy can always be adapted at a future date as events/new information dictate. This may be a more efficient way of operating.
I wholeheartedly agree that Governments need more long term thinking rather than indulging voters demands that are driven on by a crisis loving media (please excuse my cynicism) . I assume the EA community is taking action and lobbying MP’s to legally adopt UNESCO’s declaration of Responsibilities of Current Generations towards Future Generations. But I would hate to think that longtermism became an excuse for inaction or delay, as we have many serious problems that need urgent action.
Hello
At a lecture I attended, a leading banker said “long term thinking should not be used as an excuse for short term failure”. At the time, he was defending short term profit making as against long term investment, but when applied to discussions of longtermist the point is similar. Our policies and actions can only be implemented in the present and must succeed in the short term as well as the long term. This means careful risk assessment/management but as the future can never be predicted with absolute certainty,the long term effects of policy become increasingly uncertain into the future. It should be remembered that policy can always be adapted at a future date as events/new information dictate. This may be a more efficient way of operating.
I wholeheartedly agree that Governments need more long term thinking rather than indulging voters demands that are driven on by a crisis loving media (please excuse my cynicism) . I assume the EA community is taking action and lobbying MP’s to legally adopt UNESCO’s declaration of Responsibilities of Current Generations towards Future Generations. But I would hate to think that longtermism became an excuse for inaction or delay, as we have many serious problems that need urgent action.
Regards
Trevor Prew
Sheffield UK